The build up to Christmas is one of the busiest times of the year for William Barsley. I first noticed his work in the Parliament Shop, of all places. Sandwiched between stuffed toys, rubber ducks in the shape of Big Ben, and other such mass-produced gifts were his delicate, intricately crafted wooden angels. William specialises … Read more
‘Vases coloured like an autumn sky’ caught the eye of the Italian correspondent of The Architectural Record at the Paris Exposition of 1900. They were the work of American designer Louis Comfort Tiffany and the Italian reporter was not their only admirer: another critic celebrated their ‘almost supernatural light’, which he called ‘as roseate as … Read more
It was his chance to be bold and John Constable seized it. In the spring of 1831, the Suffolk artist, elected a fellow of the Royal Academy two years earlier, was on the hanging committee for the annual exhibition — and he placed his Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows squarely between two of J. M. … Read more
Throughout his life, Stanley Spencer was drawn to the numinous. As a small child, he defined angels as ‘great big white birds wot pecks’; he likened the sound of his brother William, a child prodigy, playing Bach on the organ of the village church, to the joy of angels. The village in question was Cookham, … Read more
Anyone fascinated by the lives of the ultra rich — which seems to be most of us — and in particular the part that art plays in it, will enjoy digging into the latest Survey of Global Collecting. Published by Arts Economics on behalf of the contemporary art fair Art Basel, it is available free … Read more